Congenital epulis in a newborn

Abstract

Congenital epulis (CE) is an extremely rare benign tumor of the gingiva that is found on the alveolar ridge of newborns, and the main treatment option is simple excision. Postoperative prognosis is very good, and spontaneous regression may occur despite incomplete excision. This report presented a rare case of CE and its healing process after surgery under local anesthesia. The treatment plan was decided upon through consultation between a medical team and the patient's family, with surgical excision for the main lesion, which benefitted from surgery, and follow-up for a very small-sized lesion, which was thought to be appropriate for a newborn. No recurrence was found after its removal, and favorable healing was observed.

Congenital epulis: a rare diagnosis of newborn

“…Many theories such as myoblastic, odontogenic, neurogenic, fibroblastic, histiocytic, endocrinologic or basically reactive factors has been suggested as the possible etiology of congenital epulis [ 6 ]. Though the lesion shows female predilection, no direct association with specific hormones has been identified, since endogenous hormone receptors have not been found in the lesions [ 8 ]. Melanotic neuroectodermal tumor of infancy (MNTI), hemangioma, fibroma, embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma, granuloma, malignant granular cell myoblastoma, chondrogenic and osteogenic sarcoma and schwannoma are all possible differential diagnosis for congenital epulis [ 9 ].…”

“…Although spontaneous regression has been described, large lesions interfering with feeding and respiration require immediate surgical excision, whereas small lesions can be watched for spontaneous remission. There have been no reports of lesion recurrence or malignant change to yet [ 8 ]. In such circumstances, electrocautery under general anesthesia is generally advised [ 10 ].…”

“…For smaller lesions or where intubation is impossible, excision under local anesthetic can be an alternative technique of treatment [ 10 ]. This lesion has a very good postoperative prognosis, and spontaneous regression may occur despite inadequate excision [ 8 ].…”

May’s 2023 Full Issue PDF

“…And articles with abstracts, like case reports, in same databases (Fig 2B ) show how important to include the abstract to facilitate the researcher's search. 27,28 Crossref Metadata Manager has likewise an option to include an article's abstract (Fig 3). Metadata Manager website demonstrates the textbox for abstract of each article which received such an important tool as a digital object identifier (DOI).…”

“…FIGURE 2. Smartphone screenshots from the Scopus® website compares the editorial article without abstract (A)25 and case report article with it (B)27 . (Figure2continued on the next page.…”